American Politics and Mutantkind
For the past decade or so, the United States political scene has been peppered with debates and debacles regarding how, if at all, to address the "mutant problem". The situation has been turned more urgent at times, often in response to acts committed by the Brotherhood. (2000) The Mutant Registration Act The Mutant Registration Act was introduced in Congress by Senator Robert Kelly. The act would have required mutants and their powers to be identified and registered in a government database. Senator Kelly is abducted by Magneto and later dies as a result of being forcefully mutated by a machine created by Magneto. However, Mystique assumes his appearance and identity, doing so in order to publicly withdraw support from the bill. (2001) William Stryker's Raid Following an assassi nation attempt on the President by Nightcrawler, who is being subject to mind control, William Stryker uses his authority to obtain information from Magneto while he is detained in prison, Stryker uses this information to coerce the President into authorizing a raid on the Xavier Institute. However, Stryker and the men involved in the raid are killed in the flooding of Alkali Lake. Professor Xavier and handful of X-Men appear to the President and inform him that they are on the same side. (2002) Alcatraz Island Worthington Labs of San Francisco introduces a "Cure" for mutants and offers it to all who would wish to receive the inoculation, which Magneto perceives as a threat to mutantkind. In response, he raises an army of mutants to lay siege to Worthington Labs' base on Alcatraz Island. However, the X-Men come to the aid of the humans on the island and stop Magneto and the Brotherhood. This earns the trust of the President, and he changes his stance. He appoints Hank McCoy as United Nations ambassador, and eases some of the existing restrictions against mutantkind. (2004) Lost Allies Accused of being too "soft on mutants", the President is not re-elected. Before he leaves office, he destroys any information on the Xavier Institute and its inhabitants, so that the next president can not use it against them. Before leaving office, he sends a letter to Storm, who is acting as Headmistress, and says that he has done all he can to ensure that the school and its students are left in peace. The new President, Walter Kramm, comes into office with no official stance on mutants and claims neutrality as well. (2005-2008) Rise of the Radicals President Kramm's first term is characterized by a rise in actions taken by radical anti-mutant groups, such as the Friends of Humanity, and later, the Purifiers. The Friends of Humanity held numerous protests against mutants, and organized several violent attacks on mutants, one of which involved placing three students on crucifix-like structures on the front lawn of the Xavier Institute. All such acts were granted presidential pardons by Kramm, and he became known as a closet supporter of the anti-mutant movement through his passivity. Senator Kingsley of New York, one of few pro-mutant politicians, soon came to discover his own son was a mutant. An attack by the Purifiers was made on his family's lives by attempting to burn down their home. However, both the X-Men and the Brotherhood made this impossible. The Purifiers went on later that night to attack the Xavier Institute, attempting to burn it to the ground as well. The Purifiers, too, were granted a personal pardon by President Kramm. (2009) The Mutant Response Division As one of the first acts of his new term, President Kramm institutes the Mutant Response Division as a splinter agency of the Department of Defense. While he is not able to get funding for the MRD passed in Congress, there are many private groups and companies that wish to forward the idea of keeping humans safe from mutant terror, which is mostly associated with the Brotherhood. The MRD's first project includes the co-founding of Project Birthright with Birthright Technologies. Their work is aimed towards the development of X-Wave sensors - devices which detect the bioelectric signature they have discovered as a product of the active manifestion of the X-Gene. While usually imperceptible, there is a spike in the amplitude of this signature when a mutant actively uses their powers. The X-Wave Sensors are meant to detect mutants using their powers out in the open. The project was never unveiled to the public, but a few prototypes were set out into city, and when alerted, they will alert a team of MRD agents to the scene. The X-Wave Sensors were later found to be faulty and easily overloaded, so they were taken out of commission. (2012) A Changing of the Guard Following the deaths of 13 humans in the state of New York due to Wanda Maximoff's use of Cerebro being tracked verifiably to an abundance of X-Wave in the area, a New York state Senator announces that he will introduce legislation to replace the failed Mutant Registration Act with firmer, more productive legislation against mutants. The Mutant Identification and Detainment for the Advancement of Security, or MIDAS, Act. The MIDAS Act has not yet been officially introduced into Congress, as many other states refuse to support it, but it has a great support base in the state of New York. President Kramm announces that since this is his second consecutive term in office, he is planning to run as Vice President with the candidate of his party for the following term.